Today's stage is mostly flat with only a cat 4 climb early in the stage.
The Tour peloton was happy to leave the mountains behind with the finish atop Luz Ardiden.
Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates) won his second straight mountain top finish at the Tour de France, with another utterly dominant performance. The yellow jersey stamped his authority on the race once again, finishing ahead of Jonas Vingegaard (Jumbo Visma) and Richard Carapaz (Ineos Grenadiers).
The new town of Mourenx is indelibly associated with Eddy Merckx’s astonishing exploit in the 1969 Tour de France when he broke clear of the peloton towards the top of the Tourmalet, continued his solo raid over the Aubisque and finished eight minutes ahead of the small group that finished in his wake in today’s start town, doubling his overall lead in the process.
Since then, Mourenx has mostly featured as a ville départ for stages that run across the pan-flat Landes region into Bordeaux. This stage follows that pattern with a slight tweak at the end as the finish is in Libourne, the start point of the race’s second time trial 24 hours hence.
The stage will be a contest between the breakaway and the sprinters’ teams, the former hoping that the fatigue that will be affecting every rider in the race means that the peloton’s pursuit will be in vain, the latter determined to make the most of the first of two opportunities in the Tour’s final three days.
The only classified climb, the fourth-category Côte de Bareille, comes very early and could well provide the springboard for the break to go clear. Once over it, the riders soon enter the Landes, its straight and flat roads often passing through large stands of pine trees that offer protection from the wind.
The course arrows into Libourne, the road barely wavering from the straight during the last 7km. It’ll be perfect for a bunch sprint, assuming they’ve reeled all of those escapees back in.
The sun is out in Mourenx and Eddy Merckx is at the Tour de France to recalls his stage win and perhaps see Cavendish beat his record.
It will be interesting to see his reaction if Cavendish wins today.
The final teams are on stage at the sign-on, with Ineos Grenadiers lead by Richard Carapaz.
The Ecuadorian rider finished third in Luz Ardiden to cement his third place overall.
He is 5:51 down on Tadej Pogacar but only six seconds down on Jonas Vingegaard.
The two will fight it out in Saturday's time trial to decide the final podium positions.
(Image credit: Getty Images)
Richard Carapaz (Ineos Grenadiers) crossed the line in third place for the second time in 24 hours at the Tour de France at Luz Ardiden, but the Ecuadorian appeared far more satisfied with Thursday’s outcome as his place on the final podium in Paris now seems increasingly likely.
Ineos Grenadiers turned in a strong collective performance both on the upper slopes of the Tourmalet and the lower slopes of Luz Ardiden, with Tao Geoghegan Hart in particular putting in a hugely impressive six-kilometre turn on the front.
Click below to read the full story in Carapaz's ride by Alasdair Fotheringham, who was in Luz Arididen yesterday.
Bahrain Victorious sign on and wave to the crowd. They race on despite the French police investigation that shook the Tour de France yesterday and was first revealed by Cyclingnews Editor Daniel Benson.
Deceuninck-QuickStep sign on now with Mark Cavendish quiet and focused before the stage.
He was asked if he can win today and so beat Merckx's record.
"It’d be nice. On paper it could be a bunch sprint but there are teams here who not won a stage at the Tour de France," Cavendish said.
"It'll be a tough ask to control but we'll see what we can do."
(Image credit: Getty Images)
UAE Team Emirates are the last to sign-on with race leader Tadej Pogacar in the yellow jersey once again.
As the riders line-up, Merckx and Cavendish say hello and hug.
It seems pretty clear that Merckx wished Cavendish all the best for the stage.
We're three minutes from the roll out from Mourenx.
All the jersey wearers are lined up at the front of the peloton.
The riders face a 10-minute ride to the depart reel, when the flag will drop and the 207km stage will officially start.
Allez le gars. Ride safely.
This was the very nice Merckx-Cavendish moment.
🤩 From one legend to another. Respect!🤩 D'une légende à une autre ! Respect !#TDF2021 pic.twitter.com/Jeuj13ZAmHJuly 16, 2021
If you listen carefully, you can hear Merckx say: "I hope you win a 35th stage today."
This is the map of the stage.
(Image credit: ASO)
The stage is about to start. Get ready!
The stage starts with a short descent and then the cat 4 climb that could inspire attacks and the early break.
We're expecting fireworks and fast racing.
The flag drops and the first attacks come.
Crash!
Several riders are blocked and forced to chase.
Cavendish just avoided the crash.
Deceuninck-QuickStep try to block the road but more attacks go off the front.
To calm the atttacks, even Tadej Pogacar chases one move.
Pogacar seems to be calming the attacks because several teammates were caught in the crash.
The peloton has let a break go.
The gap is up to 2:00.
190km to go
In the break are Julien Bernard (Trek-Segafredo), Jonas Rutsch (EF Education-Nippo), Simon Clarke (Qhubeka-NextHash), Franck Bonnamour (B&B-KTM), Georg Zimmermann (Intermarché-Wanty Gobert) and Matej Mohoric (Bahrain Victorious).
The gap is up to 4:20.
Where are Deceuninck-QuickStep?
180km to go
The peloton is lined out as other teams lead the chase.
We can see Alpecin-Fenix on the front, riding for Jasper Philipsen's chances in the sprint.
Other riders are sat further back, including Andre' Greipel, who turns 39 today.
A birthday win would be a big, big story and a great birthday present.
(Image credit: Getty Images Sport)
Julien Bernard (Trek-Segafredo), Jonas Rutsch (EF Education-Nippo), Simon Clarke (Qhubeka-NextHash), Franck Bonnamour (B&B-KTM), Georg Zimmermann (Intermarché-Wanty Gobert) and Matej Mohoric (Bahrain Victorious) have all been aggressive during the Tour.
Are they fighting for the super combatif prize in Paris?
Alpecin have three riders on the front to share the work load.
Their work is pegging the gap at 4:00.
Patrick Konrad and Wilco Kelderman (Bora), Rafa Majka (UAE), Thomas (Ineos), Henao (Qhubeka) and Poels (Bahrain) were all involved in the crash.
Henao needed some medical treatment from the race doctor's car but rides on.
170km to go
The riders are riding at 50km/h on the flat roads. They are ticking off the 10km blocks at speed.
The work by Alpecin-Fenix has reduced the gap on the break to 3:30.
Crash!
Crash in the peloton.
Riders down include G Martin, Colbrelli and others.
Enric Mas also involved.
Cavendish was also caught-up in the crash.
Fortunately nobody seems injured. Only one Cofidis riders needs brief medical treatment.
The peloton has eased to allowed the riders involved in the crash to chase back on.
The peloton is spread across three groups.
Colbrelli is the first to get medical treatment.
UAE avoided the crash because it happened behind them. That's the benefit of riding up front to protect the race leader.
Groups of riders, including Mas, are tucked in behind team cars as they ride to get back into the peloton.
Cavendish and Colbrelli are both back into the peloton, just in time to contest the intermediate sprint in Saint-Sever.
10km from the sprint, Alpecin-Fenix are back giving it big licks in pursuit of the six rider break.
The gap is at 3:50.
Enric Mas is back in the pack. He is not injured but that was a scare for his sixth place overall.
Despite the crashes, the six leaders have covered 47.5km in the first hour of stage 19.
Cavendish has moved back up to near the front. He will surely fight for the intermediate sprint points very soon.
Merckx in Mourenx is about more than Cavendish and the stage win record.
Merckx was first dubbed the Cannibal after his Tour stage win in the city in 1969.
He made a famous solo attack of over 140km across the Pyrénées.
🚩 The 19th stage of the #TDF2021 started in Mourenx.🤩 It was here that 🇧🇪 Eddy Merckx became a legend of the Tour in 1969! ⏩ A look back on that famous solo raid of over 140km across the Pyrénées. pic.twitter.com/uf6vK0QWGaJuly 16, 2021
The break is 1km from the sprint point.
The six riders will sweep up most of the points but we expect a fight for the others.
Some of Cavendish's rivals will be trying to save their legs for the final sprint, rather than go deep in the intermediate sprint.
But we expect Cavendish, Michael Matthews and Sonny Colbrelli to fight it out. Cavendish leads Matthews by 38 points.
(Image credit: Bettini Photo)
Here we go.
Bike Exchange lead it out for Matthews.
The sprint is slightly uphill.
Matthews leads it out and takes 9 points. Colbrelli scores 8 points in his slipstream.
Mezgec also scores points, with Cavendish scoring six points. He opted not to deep on the riding sprint and so to limit his losses.
Matthews pulled back 3 points on Cavendish but the Manxman now has 304 points, with Matthews on 269. Colbrelli is third with 2016 points.
Today's finish will be far more important for the points, with 50 awarded to the stage winner.
Meanwhile, the break pushes on, working together to stay 4:00 clear.
The six are: Julien Bernard (Trek-Segafredo), Jonas Rutsch (EF Education-Nippo), Simon Clarke (Qhubeka-NextHash), Franck Bonnamour (B&B-KTM), Georg Zimmermann (Intermarché-Wanty Gobert) and Matej Mohoric (Bahrain Victorious).
Attack in the peloton!
Suddenly Trek-Segafredo upset the status quo.
Brent Van Moer (Lotto) attacks. He is followed by Nils Politt (Bora) and then Toms Skujiņš (Trek).
Lots of riders want to be in the action today.
With the intermediate sprint done, perhaps Deceuninck will let them go.
Jasper Stuyvens also dynamites the peloton.
It's anarchy in the race.
Now Mads Pedersen tries his hand, lining out the pack again.
But the pack swarms around him.
The teams which have riders in the break are trying to slow the attacks.
The peloton is 3:00 behind the break due to their accelerations and attacks.
18 rider are up the road between the break and the peloton.
The peloton has eased and so the racing is really on now.
There are some strong riders in the 20-rider counter-attack.
The 20 lead the peloton by 1:00 now.
Who will lead the chase? Israel seem to have missed it.
The new 20-rider group is cutting through the forest and blasting across to the front breakaway.
However some riders are sitting on and others are attacking.
120km to go
The counter-attackers are closing in on the front six.
The gap is 1:20
The peloton is at 1:50 and they are still chasing.
The peloton is closing the gap. But that will only surely spark more attacks.
(Image credit: Getty Images)
Chris Froome is helping the peloton chase, as is Geraint Thomas.
The 20-rider has split but are being closed down by the peloton.
The chasers are only 1:20 down on the break now, meaning we could soon have a completely new race.
🚴♂️ A strong chasing group.🚴♂️ Un imposant groupe de poursuivants.#TDF2021 pic.twitter.com/6DIoqcsTBhJuly 16, 2021
There are 14 riders in the counter-attack but the peloton is only 40 seconds back.
The 14 are: Mike Teunissen (Jumbo-Visma), Jasper Stuvyen, Edward Theuns (Trek-Segafredo), Davide Ballerini (DQS), Nils Politt (Bora-Hansgrohe), Christophe Laporte (Cofidis), Silvan Dillier (Alpecin-Fenix), Michael Valgren (EF), Elie Gesbert (Arkea-Samsic), Casper Pedersen (DSM), Brent Van Moer (Lotto-Soudal), Ion Izagirre (Astana), Max Walscheid (Qhubeka-NextHash) and Anthony Turgis (TotalEnergies).
They are 40 seconds down on Julien Bernard (Trek-Segafredo), Jonas Rutsch (EF Education-Nippo), Simon Clarke (Qhubeka-NextHash), Franck Bonnamour (B&B-KTM), Georg Zimmermann (Intermarché-Wanty Gobert) and Matej Mohoric (Bahrain Victorious).
The peloton seems to be losing grip on the attackers.
Their gap is up to 50 seconds.
Bahrain and Ineos are leading the chase.
The 14 are just 15 seconds from the six-rider attack.
The peloton is at 1:00. Will they now ease up and try to organise a more controlled chase?
100km to go
As the stage nears halfway, the racing is still very aggressive and wide open.
This could end in a sprint but the brea could also stay away. It will be fast chase all the way to the finish in Libourne.
There we go, the 14 join the six up front to form a 20-rider attack.
(Image credit: Getty Images)
The peloton is just 45 seconds back and that is stopping the team cars from crossing to the breakaway.
Mark Cavendish (Deceuninck-QuickStep) can beat Eddy Merckx's stage win record today in Libourne with his 35th stage win in the Tour.
The five-time Tour winner wished the British sprint good luck at the start in Mourenx.
In this photo there are 68 Tour de France wins and a lot more too!
(Image credit: Getty Images)
This is the moment the front of the race came together.
Behind only Bike Exchange and Israel Start-Up Nation seem to have missed the attack and so are willing to chase.
🚴♂️ A coming together! The chasing group has caught the 6 leading riders with the peloton not far behind.🚴♂️ Jonction à l'avant ! Le groupe de chasse a rejoint les 6 premiers échappés du jour. Le peloton est tout proche.#TDF2021 pic.twitter.com/1Ev3D6cuyzJuly 16, 2021
Israel have 7 riders in the pack and many of them are working to close the attack down.
The groups can see each other on the long straight roads through the forest but it will be difficult for the pack to close the gap.
90km to go
The Israel riders admit they are not bringing the gap down.
Cavendish is sat in the group and is happy to let the 20-rider attack go clear. If the 20 riders sweep up the green jersey points that means Cavendish has a far better chance of winning the green jersey.
The gap is up to 1:30. Israel Start-Up Nation are hoping to win their first ever Tour stage but it does not look likely today.
UAE Team Emirates, Ineos Grenadiers, Israel Start-Up Nation, Movistar, Groupama-FDJ and BikeExchange don't have a rider in the break. But the gap is up to 1:50.
The 20 riders in the break are:
Mike Teunissen (Jumbo-Visma), Julien Bernard, Jasper Stuvyen, Edward Theuns (Trek-Segafredo), Davide Ballerini (DQS), Nils Politt (Bora-Hansgrohe), Christophe Laporte (Cofidis), Silvan Dillier (Alpecin-Fenix), Michael Valgren, Jonas Rutsch (EF Education-Nippo), Elie Gesbert (Arkea-Samsic), Casper Pedersen (DSM), Brent Van Moer (Lotto-Soudal), Ion Izagirre (Astana), Simon Clarke, Max Walscheid (Qhubeka-NextHash), Anthony Turgis (TotalEnergies), Franck Bonnamour (B&B-KTM), Georg Zimmermann (Intermarché-Wanty Gobert) and Matej Mohoric (Bahrain Victorious).
They came together with 100km to race.
Deceuninck are not riding in the pack because they have fast finisher Davide Ballerini in the attack.
That's a smart tactical move and means they do not have to chase. Ballerini is also fast in a sprint and so could win the stage.
